Bake Sales for Crosswalks

Idahoan advocates had to get desperate to fund basic pedestrian safety features—all while the state DOT is budgeting $100 million to overhaul a single freeway interchange.

American Suburbs Are a Horror Movie and We’re the Protagonists

Walking alone to the grocery store is, for me, like walking through a creepy hallway at night. Why? Because America is filled with liminal spaces.

Neighborhood Design, Suburban Experiment, Walkability, Top Story, ShayestehShina ShayestehJanuary 13, 2022walkability, Pedestrian Safety, pedestrian safety, #PedestrianUnfriendly, pedestrians, Safety, Texas, Austin, suburban development pattern, suburban experiment, psychology, Psychology

Faith Communities and Walkability

Strong Towns advocates and faith communities both want to create neighborhoods with vibrant economies that benefit everyone. A good place to begin working together is around walkability.

Faith, Walkability, Top StoryJohn PattisonJanuary 12, 2022faith communities, Faith Featured, walkability, churches

Renderings vs. Reality: A Roundup of 2021s Most Egregious Development Illustrations

If a picture can say a thousand words, it can probably also tell at least 100 lies—as demonstrated by these development projects that did not turn out as promised.

Fisher, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryLauren FisherJanuary 10, 2022urban design, #PedestrianUnfriendly, pedestrian crossing, Diverging Diamond, intersections, pedestrians, Pedestrian Safety, pedestrian safety, design, walkability

The Vital Pleasure of Existing in Public

How much do people in your community go about their lives in public or in private?

Herriges, Public Space, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJanuary 5, 2022public space, Florida, urbanism, walkability

It Ain't Easy Being Seen

Pedestrians don’t bear primary responsibility for road safety—but to an extent, neither do drivers. These photos illustrate why.

Roads and Streets, Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroNovember 23, 2021Pedestrian Safety, pedestrians, Street Design, Safety, #SlowTheCars, design, walkability

Planning Without Plans

In everyday life, people usually say “I need a plan” if something has gone wrong. Plans should play a similar role in cities.

Incrementalism, Member Post, Planning Profession, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryTristan ClevelandNovember 3, 2021planning profession, planning process, urban planning, urban design, walkability, incrementalism

Our Self-Imposed Scarcity of Nice Places

Why is it that when a place is [pick one: walkable, bikeable, beautiful, lovable, inviting, human-scale], it so often gets coded as being “gentrified” or “upscale”?

Herriges, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesNovember 3, 2021urbanism, urban design, walkability, gentrification, Gentrification

This Stuff Works—I’m Living Proof

You don’t have to move into a condo or apartment tower to support—and experience the benefits of—smart urban growth.

Public Transit, Success Story, Walkability, Top StorySteve WrightOctober 8, 2021walkability, sidewalks, coronavirus, Coronavirus, public health, Public Health, success, success stories

The Environment Question

Where does the Strong Towns approach intersect with environmentalism?

Marohn, Roads and Streets, Walkability, Top StoryCharles MarohnSeptember 16, 2021environment, strong towns approach, Electric Vehicles, walkability, streets

Walkability and the Culture Wars

A recent Vice article seems to suggest that most Americans don’t want more walkable places. Here’s why that takeaway is totally wrong.

Herriges, Suburban Experiment, Walkability, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesSeptember 15, 2021walkability, suburbs, suburbanization, psychology, car culture

Ogden and the Storage Wars

Storage facilities have no place in a productive, walkable downtown. Here’s a case study showing why, and how to deal with the problem.

#DotheMath, Davis, Urban Design, Top StorySarah DavisSeptember 8, 2021downtown, Utah, storage units, Urban3, Land Use, walkability, #DoTheMath

Three Questions to Ask While Walking Your City

Walking permits us to acquire more robust data about our surroundings than does traveling by car. Here are three questions to help guide you as you traverse your city on foot.

Walkability, Top Story, OwensTiffany Owens ReedAugust 20, 2021walkability, Pedestrian Safety, car dependency

Anywhere Can Be Somewhere (and Other Walking Lessons)

When it comes to creating strong neighborhoods, there are some valuable lessons to be had from slowing down the pace and seeking novelty in the ordinary.

Community, Herriges, Neighborhoods, Public Space, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJuly 15, 2021neighborhood, community, Florida, Neighborhoods, public space, gardening, walkability

One Centuries-Old Trick Can Solve Your City’s Problems

Does YOUR city have problems? Learn how to solve them with one WEIRD, simple trick!

Transportation, Walkability, Top StoryBill LindekeJuly 13, 2021walkability, biking, Streets.MN, pedestrians, transportation

A Tale of Two Walks: Part 2

Our walk together continues on Fairfax Boulevard, where we encounter a much different (i.e., less friendly) pedestrian experience.

Roads and Streets, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroJuly 7, 2021walkability, Addison Del Mastro, pedestrians, car culture, Virginia

A Tale of Two Walks: Part 1

Let’s take a walk together down two different streets, and observe what car-oriented places are like from the viewpoint of a pedestrian.

Roads and Streets, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroJuly 6, 2021walkability, fine-grained, Addison Del Mastro, pedestrians, car culture, Virginia

A Preview of Bi-Partisan Compromise on Infrastructure (Sorry, It's Not Good)

We should not be cheering on simulacrums of reform when the majority of spending is going to programs that are making us weaker as a country, as cities, and as neighborhoods.

#InfrastructureCrisis, #NoNewRoads, Infrastructure, Local Government, Marohn, Politics, Transportation, Top StoryCharles MarohnJuly 6, 2021MoveMN, Infrastructure, transportation, walkability, bikeability, #NoNewRoads, infrastructure cult, local government, Minnesota

5 Reasons Why Walking Your City (Most Likely) Sucks

Although many of us agree that walkability makes sense for countless reasons, few of us actually walk the cities where we live. Why? Because it sucks.